Valve and operating means.



No. 746.149 PATENTED DEC. 8, 1903.

F. J. PLATT & J. RATGH'FORD. VALVE AND OPERATING MEANS.

APPLIGATION FILED JUNE 12. 1903.

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UNITED ST TES,

Patented December 8, 1903.

PATENT OFFIC 'FRANK J. PLATT AND JOHN RATOHFORD, OF DAYTON, OHIO,ASSIGNORS TO FRANK J. MCCORMICK, OF DAYTON, OHIO.

VALVE AND OPERATI NG MEANS.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No" 746,149, dated December8, 1903.

Application filed June 12, 1903. Serial No. 161,148. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern.-

Be it known that we, FRANK J. PLATTand JOHN RATGHFORD, citizens of theUnited States, 1 residing at Dayton, Montgomery county, Ohio, haveinvented a certain new and useful Valve and Operating Means, of whichthe following is a specification, reference being had to theaccompanying drawings, forming a part hereof, and in which likecharacters of reference designate the same parts.

Our invention relates to a new and useful valve and operating meanswhereby the valve is controlled by certain predetermined conditions ofthe substance after it has passed through said valveas, for example, theautomatic maintenance of a certain level of hot water in a hot-waterheater or' other apparatus requiring similar service.

Our invention consists of the constructions, arrangements, andcombinations of the parts hereinafter described, and briefed in each ofthe appended claims.

In the drawings illustrating our invention, Figure 1 is a frontelevation view showing our invention as applied to a hot-waterheater.Fig. 2 is a side elevation view of the same. Fig. 3 is-an enlargedcentral vertical sectional view through the automaticvalve. Fig. 4 is anenlarged view of a portion of the counterbalance-arm of the automaticvalve, showing the sectional counterweights adapted to be securedthereto, said weights being in central vertical section. ,Fig. 5.is aplan view of one of the weights shown in Fig. 4. Fig.6 is a sectionalview showing means for attaching the weight-locking member to a smoothweight-rod.

' In said drawings, 10 represents a hot-water heater or other'chamber ofsuitable construelotion desirably piped and in which or an ex-' tensionof which a suitable float or operating means ll -is mounted to be actedupon by the substance coming into said heater or chamber 10'. In thespecific instance shown in the drawings the float or operating means 11is mounted upon a shaft 12, fulcrumed in and extending beyond aprojection 14, projecting laterally from the chamber 10, said projection14 being hollow and having an enlarged segmental-shaped chamber 15,communicat= to changes in the water-level.

ing with thehollow of said projection 14, said chamber15 and projection14 being formed of two halves suitably packed and bolted to-- gether.Within the hollow of chamber 15 the float or operating means 11 ismounted, and thewater coming from chamber or heater 10 through thehollow or projection 14 into chamber 15 causes said float or operatingmeans 11 to rise and fall as. the level of said water varies. Upon theouter end of shaft 12 is a crank 16, to which is fulcrum'ed one end of aweight means 22, adapted to partially coun terbalance the weight oflever 20, pitman connections 17 and18, crank 16, and float or operatingmeans 11, as well as to counterbalance the force exerted upon thevalve-disk by the pressure of the water or other substance adapted to beclosed thereby. It will thus be seen that the valve thus counterbalancedis rendered very sensitive to the action vof-the float or operatingmeans 11, and at the same time said float or operating means 11 isrendered very sensitive and responsive great importance, as .it enablesall such apparatus requiring-uniformity of water-level or uniformsimilar conditions to.have.such uniform conditions maintained with theutmost nicety and uniformity without the manipulation of an experiencedengineer almost constantly attending it, as is necessary with deviceswhere our invention is not used.

It will thus be seen that a comparatively small movement of the float oroperating means 11 must open or close the valve, and in theaccomplishment of this end our genius has provided such valve bydeparting from the ordinary construction of valve only by providing thevalve stem and valve with very coarse multiple threads 25 in place ofthe very flue threads theretofore provided,

said; multiple threads 25 being preferably a triple thread and so coarseor such a high This is of pitch that a quarter-turn or less of thevalvestem 21 will fully open or close the valve, and consequently thepitch of said threads is such that but little pressure of the substanceadapted to be closed by said valve is required to open said valve; but,as before stated, the counterweight means 22 counterbalances suchpressure and other conditions and renders said valve highly sensitiveand responsive to said float or valve-operating means 11, which in turnrenders said float or valveoperating means 11 highly sensitive andreadily responsive to variations in the water-levelorotherconditionsadapted to 0perate said float or valve-operating means11.

Since the counterweight means 22 is adapted to counterbalance thepressure upon the valve and part or all of the weight of the connectionsand the float or operating means 11, we have provided means for varyingthe counterbalancinginfluence of said counterbalancing means 22 in theinstance shown in Figs. 1 and 2 by a weight 30, slidably mounted uponsaid lever 20 and adapted to be maintained in different positions ofadjustment thereon by set-screw 31, clamping said weight to said lever20. quently wide variations of the counterbalancing pressure of theconnterbalancing means 22 are required in places where it is impossibleor not convenient to make the counterbalance-arm of lever 20 ofsufficient length or the weight 30 of sufficient size to procure suchadjustment, and forsuch cases we have devised the counter-balancingmeans shown in Figs. 4 and 5, in which the counterbalancearm of thevalve-lever 20 is provided with a plurality of holes 40, through any oneof which is adapted to pass a bolt 41, adapted to clamp said lever 2Obetween the bifurcated ends 42 of a rod 43, to the opposite end of whichis secured a weight 44, while any number of slotted weights are adaptedto be placed upon said rod 43 and secured to said Weight 44. In theinstance shown in the drawings said weights 44 and 45 are secured, asaforesaid, by threading rod 43 throughout a portion of its length andthreading or otherwise securing weight 44 to the end thereof. Weight 44has a circular projection 46 upon its upper surface, while weights 45are each provided on opposite sides with a correspondingly circularrecess and projection 47, said recesses and projections 46 and 47 beingadapted to fit each other for interlocking said weights together, whichinterlocked position of said weights is maintained by a member 48,adjustably mounted upon said rod 43 to interlock with the upper weight.Said member 48 may be adj ustably mounted on rod 43 in any desirablemanner, it being adjustably mounted thereon in the instance shown in thedrawings, Fig. 4, by being threaded thereto and in Fig. 6 by set-screw49 clamping member 48 to smooth rod 43. Any number of weights may bereadily placed upon or removed from rod 43 by backing ofi member 48However, very freand then raising the weights slightly and removing orinserting them upon rod 43, their slots permitting lateral removal orinsertion.

The adj ustability of the connection between the float or operatingmeans 11 and the valve operator or lever 20 permits the variation atwill of the height of the water-level at which the automatic valve isadapted to be closed. In the main supplying said automatic valve is ahand-operated valve 50 for shutting off the water when the apparatus isnot in use, and which relieves the strain upon the automatic valveduring periods of idleness and adds greatly to the life of the automaticvalve.

Pipes 51 lead each at a different level from the feed-water heater 10 tothe boiler, (not shown, but of usual construction.) so that the upper ofthe pipes 51 supplies the healer 10 with steam from the boiler tosuperheat the water therein, and the lower of said pipes 51 is thewater-conduit between said heater 10 and said boiler.

Having now described our invention, what we claim, and desire to secureby Letters Patent, is-

1. In a valve-operating means, the combination of a feed-water heater, afeed-water inlet-pipe entering said heater near its top, a valve forsaid pipe, said valve having a stem 21 provided with coarse threads 25,a float in said feed-water heater, adjustable connecting means betweensaid float and said valvestem, whereby said valve may be operated bysaid float/ and a plurality of pipes, each at a different level,connecting said feed-water heater with the boiler, substantially asspecified.

2. In a valve-operating means, the combination of a feed-water heater, afeed-water inlet-pipe entering said heater near its top, a valve forsaid pipe,said valve having astem 21 provided with coarse threads 25,means whereby said valve-stein may be operated, operating means in saidfeed-water heater, a crank for said operating means, an extensiblepitman connecting said crank and said means whereby said valve may beoperated, and a plurality of pipes, each at a different level,connecting said feed-water heater with the boiler, substantially asspecified.

3. In a valve-operating means, the combination of a receptacle, apressure-pipe leading into said receptacle, a disk valve in said pipe,means whereby said valve may be operated, floating means within saidreceptacle, for controlling said valve, a connection between saidfloating means and said means whereby said valve may be operated, andadjustable means independent of said float means and connection forcounterbalancing the pressure in said pipe upon the disk of said diskvalve, substantially as specified.

4. In a valve-operating means, the combination of a receptacle, apressure-pipe leading into said receptacle, a disk valve for said pipehaving stem 21, provided with coarse valve-stem intermediate its ends, afloat within said receptacle, a connection between said float and onearm of lever 20, and counterweight means connected to the remaining armof said lever 20, substantially as specified.

5. In a valve-operating means, the combination of a receptacle, apressure-pipe leading into said receptacle,a disk valve for said pipehaving stem 21, provided with coarse multiple threads 25, a lever 20secured to said valve-stem intermediate its ends, a float within saidreceptacle, a connection between said float and one arm of lever 20, andcounterweight means adjustably mounted upon the remaining arm of saidlever 20, and consisting of a rod 43, having a weight 44 securedthereto, a plurality of weights 45, and means for said pipe having stem21, having coarse multiple threads 25, a lever 20 secured to saidvalve-stem, a float within said receptacle, a

connection between said float and lever 2O,v and counterweight meansadjustably mount- 7. The combination of receptacle, a pressure-pipeleading into said receptacle, a plu rality of valves for said pipe, afloat controlled by the contents of said receptacle, one of said valveshaving its valve-stem provided'with very coarse threads, a weightindependent of said float and connected to said valve-stem having saidcoarse threads for normally keeping said valve closed, and a connectionbetween said float and said valve-stem having said coarse threads,substantially as specified.

8. The combination of a receptacle, a pressure-valve for supplying saidreceptacle with its substance passed therethrough, means whereby saidvalve may be opened and closed by a slight movement, a float connectedto said means for regulating said valve, and counterbalance meansindependent of said float and connected to said valve at a difierentpoint from said means whereby said valve may be opened and closed forcounterbalancin g the pressure upon said valve whereby said valve isrendered sensitive to the slight movement of said float, substantiallyas specified.

9. Thecombinationofavalve,astemthere- I for having very coarse threadswhereby a slight movement of saidstem will open and close said valve, avalve-disk on said stem and having a valve-seat in the body of saidvalve, I

counterbalance means for rotating said stem and counterbalancing thepressure upon said Valve, whereby inlthe absence of said.counterb'alance means the pressure upon said valve-disk will turn saidstem and open said valve, substantially as specified.

In testimony whereof we have signed our names to this specification, inthe presence of two subscribing witnesses, at Dayton, Ohio, this 25thday of May, 1903.

FRANK J. PLATT. JOHN RATOHFORD. Witnesses: A

GEO. W. KEPLER, F. J MoCoRMIoK, Jr.

